Not Just A Black Body, Inc was launched by campaign creator and chief operating officer, Dr. Magdala Chery, after the tragic loss of her father on April 12, 2020.  Mario Chery died after seeking care at a safety net hospital where he would be diagnosed and treated for covid19. Through that experience, she saw firsthand the impacts of injustice and racism in our healthcare system. Even as a practicing physician her privilege could not override the systematic failures that put vulnerable patients like her father at a disadvantage to overcome this pandemic. By May 1st 2020, Dr. Magdala Chery’s mother would also succumb to the virus. This would mean she would lose both her parents to covid19 within a matter of weeks. Despite all of this, it became clear to Dr. Chery that silence was not an option. As she would hear and read about countless black families experiencing the same pain. She knew the time to act was now.

On the national stage, we have all witnessed how this covid19 pandemic has been an accelerator of the health disparities that were already known to be present in vulnerable populations. Even with this knowledge, we failed to plan and prepare accordingly. Simply put we did not prioritize the needs of the most vulnerable which includes the black community. All this exists in the backdrop of distrust of healthcare that has dominated communities of color for decades after countless egregious acts towards our bodies.

At the center of all of this is a healthcare system that has existed too long in a silo and without proper accountability. The health disparities that penetrate black communities are not a result of individual behaviors. But speak more to the political determinants of health in this country that use the weapons of distrust, misinformation, and dehumanization to stop us from healing and achieving wellness.

Today we fight two fatal pandemics, covid19 and racism. This fight is big and will require a team. Therefore, Dr Chery has joined forces with Dr. Sabrina Gard and Dr. Jessica Isom to push forth this movement. We cannot let this time pass without calling for real change in the health care system. We can no longer accept this system as it stands.